Justin Jefferson Off IR, should play after bye week

Published: 2023-11-28 11:25:36

The Vikings reinstated Jefferson (hamstring) from injured reserve Tuesday.

Though Jefferson was designated for return from IR on Nov. 8 after he missed the required four games due to his right hamstring strain, he never practiced as anything more than a limited participant in the ensuing three weeks and ended up missing three more games. According to Ben Goessling of the Minneapolis Star Tribune, head coach Kevin O'Connell said Jefferson was close to playing in Monday's 12-10 loss to the Bears, but with a bye on tap Week 13, the Vikings ultimately erred on the side of caution and opted to give him more time off to recover from the hamstring issue. Since Jefferson's 21-day evaluation window was set to end Tuesday, the Vikings will add him back to the 53-man roster, and O'Connell suggested that the expectation is that the star receiver will be ready to play Dec. 10 against the Raiders following the bye week. Assuming Jefferson is cleared for that contest, he'll be on the receiving end of passes from someone other than Kirk Cousins (Achilles) for only the second game in his four-year career. Joshua Dobbs has started the Vikings' last three games after Cousins suffered the season-ending injury Week 8, but after Dobbs threw four interceptions in the loss to the Bears, O'Connell noted that he's taking the bye week to re-evaluate the team's quarterback situation. If Dobbs is removed from the starting role, veteran Nick Mullens or rookie Jaren Hall would be the candidates to step in as the Vikings' new signal-caller.

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